Take your pick: 'Hack-proof' blockchain-powered padlock defeated by Bluetooth replay attack or 1kg lump hammer

A "hack-proof" smart padlock with security based on blockchain technology could be defeated by a simple Bluetooth replay attack – or a 1kg lump hammer.

The 360lock, a technologically enabled padlock (why?) was advertised by its creators as "completely hacking proof" and incorporating blockchain technology as used in the Ethereum cryptocurrency.

Its unique selling point is that the padlock can be locked and unlocked using an app that transmits over a Bluetooth Low Energy connection, rather than a physical key or combination lock. This apparently needed the inclusion of "advanced crypto codes" to drive "the level of security [to] maximum".

Such silly claims caught the eye of Pen Test Partners, who not only hacked the "hack-proof" lock but also discovered that its physical security was crap too.

All that researcher David Lodge did was record a successful Bluetooth unlock command and then replay it, as he detailed on the company blog, referring to code snippets: "After I did the below commands it popped open. The first packet is authorisation, the second the open command. So it is vulnerable to replay attacks."

Lodge also speculated that the lock was made from Zamak, a zinc-based alloy used in products ranging from zippers to rifle buttplates to cheap jewellery. While Zamak's hard-wearing properties make it good for die-casting, one thing it lacks is tensile strength.

Article continues at https://www.theregister.com/2020/09/14/smart_padlock_really_isnt/

(Just a reminder: this is the technology that some people want to put into your firearm. --Ed.)